North of Burgundy, overlooking the Yonne River and the village of Villecien, there is a unique place. The forty hectares that currently make up the Château du Feÿ estate are just the remains of a much larger territory, as evidenced by the 1,400 pigeonholes that existed in the recently restored dovecote.
10 years
For sale on the market
It was in 2017 that Jessica Flore Angel, an architect residing in New York, was in search of a suitable place for a community living project. The castle, which had been for sale for 10 years, was finally purchased after obtaining a heavy loan, in order to gradually create the envisioned place, aiming to bring together the thinkers of tomorrow. The building, for the most part dating back to the 17th century, had housed a prestigious culinary school in the 1980s. Therefore, upon its purchase, it was already well-equipped to receive and accommodate a few guests. Jessica renovated and made habitable a number of rooms in the common areas, reaching a total of 28 rooms. They were authentic, comfortable, and sometimes even luxurious. Finally, last year, she added several dozen tents resembling Roman camps in the park, without any direct view of the castle, allowing over a hundred additional people to stay on-site during the summer.
365 days
Events, Feÿtopia, and public opening.
The Château du Feÿ stands out today as a flagship and exception in the world of private castles that carry out economic activities to independently finance their maintenance and restoration. This is evidenced by the various awards received, highlighting the innovation brought by the different projects hosted at the castle. A significant portion of the schedule is occupied by event activities: seminars, weddings, various festivals - the castle is rented during the beautiful season, and without interruption. During the winter, while most castles become completely private, the Feÿtopia community settles in at Feÿ. Comprising entrepreneurs, artists, researchers, and engineers from all around the world, they come to stay for a weekend, a week, or the entire season. They work and think together on current or future projects, whether personal or collective. Everyone contributes to the castle's expenses, which allows Jessica to employ her team of over 12 people year-round and to consider the continuous maintenance of the building.
The dovecote
Symbol of an upward dynamic
The restoration of the dovecote, completed this year, holds symbolic meaning as it represents a reversal of the castle's years of neglect and degradation. The activities that have been taking place there for the past 6 years have finally enabled the challenging task of studying, diagnosing, and executing the restoration work on all the buildings that make up the Château du Feÿ. These restoration efforts, along with the increasing knowledge of this heritage, align with the more frequent public openings, always accompanied by cultural and leisure activities organized by the Friends of Feÿ association. Additionally, notable advancements include the development of new garden and vegetable garden compositions, moving steadily towards a sustainable and ecological model.
There is no doubt about the quality and future of the young company led by Jessica, which blends economic resilience, cultural development, ecological thinking, and social commitment. These four pillars balance each other year after year, ensuring the fairest transition of the very essence of a castle and the symbol it can now embody in the 21st century.
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